Jimmy Forrest is truly a forgotten tenor master. He was with Count Basie as well, but his town had that big smoky sound to it, which was a perfect counter to guys like Young and Quinichette. This 1960 disc, with a young Larry Young (only 20!) on B3, Thornel Schwartz/g and Jimmie Smith/dr, is a rib stickin collection of greasy tunes that will roll over you like smoke from the grill. The version of “Bag’s Groove”

is textbook smooth, while “Remember” cracks like BBQ sauce hitting the coals. Unbelievable.

Jimmy Forrest was an archetypical tenor saxophonist who could mix blues, bebop, and ballads into a repertoire that was at once soulful, harmonically aware, and tuneful. This recording, one of the first for organist Larry Young and his working trio, was done at the time Forrest and Harry "Sweets" Edison were co-leading a group and before the time Forrest went on to even greater visibility as a member of Count Basie's orchestra.